There are more than just Christmas lights illuminating the darkness as the sun rises on the Winter Solstice in Ireland. On December 21, a marvelous event occurs at Bru na Boinne. On a hill in the Boyne Valley of County Meath stands a complex of three monuments to the early…

As mentioned in Part 1, our ecclesiastical families married and had children.…

Innismurray Island is, perhaps, the gem of the Wild Atlantic Way and is certainly a place where Wild West Irish Tours loves to bring visitors. Steve Hogan was one such visitor this…

Early Irish society was hierarchical and divided into numerous ranks.  A person’s rank was determined by his material wealth.  As a person’s fortunes changed, his rank in society could also change.  The class system was not rigid.  Every…

I purchased a copy of “In the Tracks of the West Clare Railway” by Eddie Lenihan on a visit to my native County Clare. If there was ever a book that needed writing this is it. No better man than Eddie to do the job. This is not a short list of boring facts and figures such as we were accustomed in history books going to school. No, this is a 319-page account of…

Library of Congress Gen. Michael Kelly Lawler

DOMHNAIGH-- On Nov. 16, 1814, Michael Kelly Lawler,…

Are you descended from any of Ireland's hundreds of hereditary ecclesiastical families?  Many of us can point to our warrior and royal ancestors.  But how many of us know about our ecclesiastical ancestors?  

That's right.  Our ecclesiastical…

On Sunday August 6, 1911, readers of the Irish Sunday Independent opened their papers to read about a Dublin-born Irish-American who had been “sailor, tramp, shepherd, truckman, stevedore and tally clerk” before becoming a Buddhist monk in Rangoon, Burma  and working…

by Patrick Bonar

Isaac Butt Q.C. M.P. (6 September 1813 - 5 May 1879) was an Irish…

DOMHNAIGH -- On Oct. 26, 1771, John (Juan) MacKenna (left), who would rise to fame in South America, was born in Clogher,…

Brehon Law had some special and unusual requirements for the care of an injured person.  The victim was entitled to peace and quiet.  The law specifically stated:  “No games are played in…

The murder had made a big stir from the start, despite the  mayhem in Dublin a few years earlier. The police photo in situ shows a large crowd gathering to stare, and according to reporters they flocked to see the body in the back shed of Lamb Doyle’s public house outside…

The Battle of Perryville from a contemporary illustration.

MÁIRT -- On October 8, 1862, Irish-born…

As requested, here an account of the life of Anne Devlin, assistant to Robert Emmet.

In the church of St. Nicholas of…

It seems to me people start Halloween the first of October. They claim it has overtaken Christmas as the best holiday of the year. Approximately 100 countries celebrate Halloween but just what are we actually celebrating?…

The Aran sweater is Ireland's major contribution to international style. A national icon, the sweater is still worn  and loved, connecting people with Ireland, all over the world. Cozy, cool, and knitted with the best quality wool, the …

It's the stuff great films and spellbinding stage performances are made of.  In the case of "The Last Torch," though, the story is plucked right from the history books.  To be more specific, in this case, the story is taken from the personal journey of 16th century…